Stylus-sharpening device



Jan. 12 1926. J. Q. SLYE STYLUS SHARPENING DEVI CE Filed May 27, 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 n llll (MW www g @5H Mjah/( Jan. 12 ,f 1926.

J. Q. SLYE STYLUS SHARPENING DEV'IC Filed May 2'7, 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Jan. 12, 1926.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN QUEEN SLYE,

ARD APPLIANCE AND LUMBIA, A CORPORATION To all whom it may concern.'

lie it known that OF WASHINGTON, DIS

SOUVENIR COMPANY, 0F WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF C0- OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.

TRICT OF COLUMBIA, ASSIGNOR T0 STAND- STYLUS-SHARPENING DEVICE.

Application filed May 27,1922. Serial 1go. 564,161.

JOHN QUEEN Sinn, a

citizen of the United States of America,

residing at VaShington,

D. C., has invented a new and useful Stylus-Sharpening Device,

ot which the The best talking following is a specification.

machine records, namely those rendered by the best singers and players, for and instance such as operatic music the best songs in general, are reproduced with wooden needles.

lt is well known that a great many needles of this kind are us ed, and it is also known that when a libre needle has been used once,

used once or twice,

are used.

ltv is, therefore,

invention to provide a needle sharpening Possibly a needle may be due to the fact that such ded after having been a 'great many needles the purpose of the present talking machine for renewing the device,

beveled end, just prior to it being engaged with the record, thereby making the needle as good as new, and avoiding the use of so many needles during a lt is another purpose this character,

ening device of ably carried on the musi-cal evening.

to provide a sharpto be detachturntable of the talking machine, and provided with a spiral groove having a coat of eniery, so that the needle inay operate and b e sharpened therein.

Still another purpose is the provision of a sharpening device, news the beveled end but also acts to feed sharpening device which not only reof the fibre needle,y the needle from the toward and upon the record, in a position to feed around the sound groove of the record. In other words theneedle is first sharpened and then auton'iatically placed upon the record, thereby entailing no separate sharpening, by hand, or by an instrument after placed in the stylus holder and the machine started. Obviously from an inspection of the drawing, in connection with the following vdescription, the needle automatically proceeds from the sharpening device toward and upon the record, thereby not only saving the number of needles used, but also expediting the sharpening of the needles.

A further purpose device including means by which sharpening 1t may accommodat is the provision of a e itself to records' of dfherein given are in no way limitative and that` while still keeping within the scope of the invention, any desired modifications otf detail and desired proportions may be made in the apparatus according to circumstances.

'lhc invention comprises further features and combination of parts, as will be hereinal'ter set forth, shown in the drawings and claimed.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a perspective view of a talking machine showing the improved stylus or needle sharpening device applied and constructed in accordance with the invention;

Figure 2 is a plan view of the upper part of a talking machine, showing the stylus sharpening device as applied to the table, and the tone aiin in a position with the needle traveling in the einery groove of the sharpening device, whereby the needle may be fed toward and upon the record to be played;

Figure 3 is an enlarged detail plan view of a segment of the sharpening device or ring. showing` the einery groove and the adjustable tongue;

Figure l is still another enlarged plan view of a segment of the sharpening device or ring, 'showing the mounting of the transfer tongue;

Figure 5 is a detail perspective view of the joint which connects the transfer tongue toable manner. '(which may be the casing of a conventional form of talking machine, and 2 denotes the turntable, which supports a record 3.

The talking machine also includes a tone 'arm 4, which is mounted centrally to the rear of the cabinet in the present instance. A fibre needle, such as indicated at. 5 is inserted in the stylus holder in amanner similar to the insertion of a steel needle, and is secured in such holder in a like manner.

The sharpening device is designed to be :arried by the table 2, in order to move therewith. In fact the sharpening device comprises a ring 6, which is p rovided with a plurality of radial supporting legs 7, the lnner ends of which are curved as shown at 8, for the purpose of engagement with the marginal edge, which is curved 1n cross section. Suitable holders or levers 9 are pivoted at 10 to the lower portions of the legs. These holders or dogs have their noses 11 engaging partly under the table, to prevent accidental upward movement of the ring. It is obvious that sufficient pull upwardly on the ring will cause the dogs to yield, and permit the removal of the ring.

The ring may be cast or otherwise constructed, and may be made of any suitable metal, either steel or aluminum, preferably the latter, which is light, and therefore will not impede the movement of the table. The upper surface of the ring is provided with a spiral groove consisting of one or two convolutions. This groove 13 is V-shaped in cross section, as shown clearly in Figure 7, and the inclined face 14 of the groove is provided with a coating of emery or carborundum or similar material 15, for the purpose of sharpening the fibre needle. In fact the inclined face of the groove corresponds to the bevel of the needle, ther-efore when the tone arm is placed, so that the beveled end of the needle will contact with the inclined face of the groove, the fine light coating of emery or carborundum or other suitable material will act to grind the bevel of the libre needle, and therefore sharpen the point of the needle, that is to say the point which engages the sound groove of the record.

This light layer of emery or carborundun'i or other suitable material may be applied to the inclined face of the groove, in any suit- For instance the inclined face any suitable depth preferably ofa greater depth than the depth of the bevel of a needle) of the groove may be roughened, as indicated at 16 in Figure 9, so as to receive alight coat of fish glue, shellac or any other suitable adhesive. This roughened surface is not to be too deep, but very light, in fact just enough to permit the adhesive to take hold, sufficient to retain the particles of emery or carborundum on the surface. After applying the coat of adhesive in order to provide an attachmentto the inclined face, a requisite amount of emery or carborundum in a powder-d form is distributed uniformly over the surface. and the surface then allowed to dry, in order to provide a grinding surface for the beveled end of a fibre talking machine stylus or needle. Any other suitable manner of applying the einery or carborundum to the surface of the groove may be employed, provided the desired result may be attained.

As previously stated the sharpening groove of the ring is in a spiral form. consisting of one or two convolutions, therefore when the needle is placed in engagement with the sharpening groove, it may feed toward the table, as the table rotates. The one or two revolutions of the table will be sufficient to permit the beveled end of the needle to be ground, so as tovpermit the pointl of the needle to become sharpened, equally as good as a new needle.

It has been found that when the needle reaches the terminal of the sharpening groove, the beveled end of the needle will have been ground just suiiicient, to renew the point of the needle. In fact it has been found that the amount of surface removed from the bevel will not shorten the needle to an extent as would render the shortness perceptible, when compared with new needles. It is true, however, that if a -needle is sharpened consecutively for a great number of times, the shortness of the needle may be readily observed, as con'ipared with new needles.

In order to permit the stylus to feed from the sharpening g'roove of the grinding device automatically to a position on the record (which is supported by the revoluble table) the inner margin of the ring 6, which carries thc sharpening groove, has its .under portion cut away or undercut, and pivotally connected to the surface of this undercut or cut away portion is a needle transfer tongue 18. This transfer tongue carries a groove, corresponding to the sharpening groove of the ring. However, the groove 19 of the transfer tongue is plain, in fact not provided with a sharpening surface. The transfer tongue is suliciently curved, and long enough, in order to permit the stylus of a needle lo be transferred automatically from ,the sharpening groove of the ring 6 to the sound groove of the record, without in any way entailing any unnecessary work on the part of the operator, when operating the talking machine.

In order to adjust the transfer tongue, so that it may accommodate itself to records of different diameters. a suitable thumb screw or the like 20 is carried radially by the under portion of the ring, and swivelled at 2l to the extension tongue. whereby upon rotating the thumb screw in the. desired direction, the transfer tongue may be adjusted relaaluminum. The spiral groove is formed through the upper tively to the groove of the record. The transfer tongue may be constructed and arranged, so. as to accommodate records of different diameters, from the maximum to the minimum diameter.

In the operation, the ring 6 is placed in a position over the table, substantially concentrically therewith, and is then lowered, until the curved edges of the legs may contact with the perimeter of the table, then the holding members may be positioned to retain the ring in position, on the table in such wise as to prevent movement of the ring, when in the act of rinding the beveled end. The stylus is place in engagement with the groove after the table has been started, though itis possible to place it in engagement before the table is started. However it is preferable to place the stylus in engagement with the .grinding groove after starting the table, due to the fact that the act of grinding the bevel of the stylus, will tend to vreta-rd the table, until the end of the stylus reachesthe plain groove of the transfer tongue, and until after the terminal of the tongue reaches the sound groove of the record. After so arranging the ring, the thumb screw is then properly adjusted, in order to arrange the transfer tongue in position, sutlicient to transfer the stylus from the sharpening groove to the sound groove of the record, possibly in a. short while. AS soon as the stylus leaves the transfer tongue, it will engage the sound groove, and will subsequently feed from the outer margin of the record to the center, where the music or record terminates.

The sharpening device or ring which 1s provided with the cmery groove may be constructed of any suitable metal, preferably formed in the face of the ring has one face thereof supplied with a coating or layer of emery or carborundum, which is applied, by first s upplying the face with a coating of some suitable adhesive, subsequently to which a very fine dust of emery or carborundum is applied upon the adhesive. In this way an emery sharpening face is provided for grinding the beveled end of a libre needle, so as to sharpen the point thereof. If desired, the ring or sharpening device may be stamped and shaped from any suitable sheet metal.

The pivot which connects the extension tongue 18 to the ring 6 comprises a bolt 23 upper which has a rectangular head 241, which holds the bolt fast and against turning 1n the ring 6. This bolt 23 passes through the extension tongue 18 and has a nut 25 including a washer 27 on a reduced shank 26, to hold the extensionv tongue on the bolt. It will be noted that the groove 13 of the ring surface of the so as not to rerectangular head of the bolt,

from the ring ta-rd the needle as it travels to and through lthe tongue.

Where the grooves of the ring and the tongue adjoin, they are flared or curved outwardly on oppos1te sides, so as to permit the needle to caf-:ily pass from one to the other.

The adjusting thumb screw 2O is threaded through a bearing 28, which is swivelled at 22 in the ring 6, so that the screw may accommodate itself to the ring and the tongue, when the screw is adjusted, and the tongue moved inwardly over the record.

The invention having been set forth. what is claimed is 1. 'lhe combination with a revoluble talking machine turntable for carrying a record, of means provided with needle sharpening.r surface and positioned in concentric relation to the turntable, and means operativelyY engaging with the turntable and supporting said first means in its concentric relation, whereby said first means is capable of being lifted from the turntable without lli-st removing the latter or the record to he supported thereby.

2. The combination with a revoluble talking machine turntable for carrying a record, of means carried by the table independently of the record vfor sharpening a needle and provided with needle starting and ending terminals, and means operatively connected to the ending terminal for transferring the needle from the sharpening means to the sound groove of the record automatically.

3. The combination with a revoluble talking machine turntable for carrying a record, of a sharpening device supported on the turntable and provided with a spiral grinding groove for grinding the beveled end of. a stylus or needle, and movable means at the terminal of said spiral groove for transferring the needle from engagement with the grmding groove to an engagement with the sound` groove of the record.

4. The combination with a revoluble talking machine turntable for carrying a record, of a sharpening device supported on the turntable and provided with a spiral grinding groove `for grinding the beveled end of a stylus or needle, and means at the terminal of saidf spiral groove and movable to different ositions over the record for transferring t e needle from engagement with the grinding groove to and in engagement with the sound groove of the record, and means for holding said transfer means in such different positions, whereby the needle may transfer to records of different diameters.

5. The combination with a revoluble talking machine turntable for carrying a record, of a member provided with a needle sharpening groove and positioned in concentric relation to the turntable, and a plurality of supports carried by said member and operating 1n engagement with the turntable lll?) and supporting said member in its concentric relation, whereby said member is capable of being lifted from the turntable Without first removing the table or the record to be supported thereby.

(i. A stylus sharpening device consisting of av member for operative mounting on a record supporting turntable, said member' having a grinding groove With w-hich the beveled end of a stylus may engage, whereby said beveled end may be sharpened, and means at the terminal of the grinding groove and movable to different positions over the record for making the transfer of the needle from the grinding groove to the record groove.

7. A stylus sharpening device consisting of a member for operative mounting on a record supporting turntable, said member having a grinding groove with which the beveled end of a stylus may engage, whereby said beveled end may be sharpened, and means at the terminal of the grinding groove and movable to different positions over the record for making the transfer of the needle from the grinding groove to the record groove, and means for holding the transfer means in such different, positions, whereby the stylus may accommodate itself to records of different diameters.

8. A stylus sharpening device consisting of a member for operative mounting on a record supporting turntable, said member having a grinding groove with which the beveled end of a stylus may engage, whereby said beveled` end may be sharpened, said grinding groove having an inclined grinding surface and provided with an opposite plain surface extending substantially perpendicularly so as to enable centering the beveled end ofthe stylus to be ground.

9. A stylus sharpening device consisting of a member for operative mounting on a record supporting turntable, said member having a grinding groove with which the beveled end of a stylus may engage, whereby said beveled end may be sharpened, means at the ends of said grinding groove and movable over the record for guiding the needle to the record groove, said grinding groove of the member having an inclined grinding surface and provided with an opposite plain surface extending-substantially perpendicularly so as to enable centering the beveled end of the stylus to be ground, the guiding means being a continuation of the `grinding groove.

l0. A stylus 'sharpening device consisting of a ring for operative mountin on a record supporting turntable, said ring havin a grinding groove with which the beveled end of a stylus may engage, whereby said beveled end may be sharpened, and a transfer device pivoted to the under portion of the ring for automatically transferring the stylus from the sharpening groove to the sound groove of the record.

ll. A stylus sharpening device consisting of a ring for operative mounting on a record supporting turntable, said ring Ihavin a grinding groove with which the beveled end of a stylus may engage, whereby said beveled end may be sharpened, a transfer geo device pivoted to the under portion of thev ring and movable kto different positions over the record for automatically transferring the stylus from the sharpening groove to the sound groove of the record, and means comprising a thumb-screw carried by the ring and operatively connected to the transfer device for holding it, whereby the needle may transfer to records of different diameters.

In Witness whereof, the inventors signature is hereunto ailixed.

JOHN QUEEN SLYE. 

